1. Field of the Invention
The present invention related to a device for directing a camera operation by detecting operator's eye-gaze direction which is designed to control start, pause or ending of the operation of still cameras or video cameras by detecting the camera operator's eye-gaze direction.
2. Related Background Art
In conventional cameras, a shutter is released when a camera operator depresses a shutter release button mounted on a camera body.
The conventional releasing method of the above-described type has a disadvantage in that camera shake readily occurs in a direction in which the release button is depressed. When the exposure mode is set to, for example, the program mode, the shutter speed is thus automatically set to the lower limit, 1/60 (s), so as to eliminate the above problem.
Also, when the operator releases the shutter with his or her one hand alone, e.g., when the operator handles the camera with his or her right hand while holding a cabled electronic flash or baggage with the left hand, he or she has a difficulty to release the camera.
There is a conventional camera which performs automatic exposure control and automatic focusing control according to luminance information and distance information on a plurality of areas in a photo-taking screen, and this type of camera performs the exposure control and the focusing control on the basis of data obtained in each area. Since such a camera has the reference of the exposure control and the focusing control at the center of the screen, it has a disadvantage that the primary subject must be placed at the center of the screen.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-94232 discloses a camera control apparatus wherein the position of the primary subject on a phototaking screen is set by detecting the position of camera operator's eye-gaze, and a weighting circuit calculates optimum exposure and focal point distance for the primary subject from the position. With this camera control apparatus, it is possible to carry out photo-taking operation on a subject at which a camera operator aims as the primary subject at proper exposure and focal point distances.
However, a conventional camera control apparatus has a problem that a release operation can take place even if the exposure and focal point distances are not detected resulting in an inadvertent release operation.
Conventionally, a camera having this type of eye-gaze detecting means has detected the position of operator's eye-gaze in the photo-taking screen by performing distance measurement for each of a plurality of areas or parts in the photo-taking screen and by performing photometry on the photo-taking screen divided into a plurality of parts, thereby selecting a part in the photo-taking screen as the primary subject to perform control of driving of a camera lens and exposure control (e.g., Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 1-241511 and 2-5).
However, since the conventional camera having an eye-gaze detecting means detects a position in the photo-taking screen wherein distance measurement and photometry are performed from the eye-gaze, when the display in the finder changes during the detection of eye-gaze, there is a possibility that the eye-gaze moves to the display and is detected in an inadequate position and, as a result, the photo-taking operation is carried out in a manner which is not intended by the camera operator.